Some news and notes from the blue paint...
Hutton in for Rinne
With Pekka Rinne out for at least a month with a bacterial infection in his hip, the Preds will turn to backup Carter Hutton tonight against Winnipeg.
Hutton, 27, hasn’t played much this year -- just two games -- but does have experience against Winnipeg, thanks to a stellar 38-save outing in a 3-1 win over the Jets on Oct. 20.
Lehtonen returns
After missing the last five games with a lower-body injury, Kari Lehtonen will make his return to the Dallas goal on Thursday against Calgary.
The Stars have gone 1-4-0 since Lehtonen got hurt, so his return is a welcome one -- he was 2-1-0 with a 1.57 GAA and .953 save percentage prior to the lower-body ailment.
Elsewhere...
-- After a rough outing against Boston on Saturday (a 5-0 loss), Ben Bishop will be back in goal for Tampa tonight against Chicago. It’s no surprise the Bolts are going back to Bishop -- in his last game against the ‘Hawks, a 3-2 shootout win on Oct. 5, he stopped 37 shots in a game the Lightning were badly outplayed.
– Cory Schneider will make his third straight start for the Devils on Thursday against his old team, the Vancouver Canucks.
– Cam Talbot will make his NHL debut for the Rangers on Thursday against Philadelphia, in place of the injured Henrik Lundqvist.
– The Flames will go back to Karri Ramo on Thursday against Dallas. Ramo was in net for Monday’s 3-2 win over Los Angeles while Joey MacDonald was on the hook for Tuesday’s 4-2 loss to Phoenix.